The present invention resides in a vehicle washing apparatus having a series of archways through which a vehicle is moved while various washing fluids are sprayed under pressure onto the vehicle. The apparatus has utility with all types of vehicles including trucks, buses, railway cars and locomotives as well as passenger automobiles.
Vehicle washing apparatuses through which an entire vehicle such as a passenger automobile is pulled or driven are known in the prior art. Many of these apparatuses employ rotating brushes or brush-type rollers which make contact with the vehicle as part of the cleaning process. Other types of systems utilize spraying arrangements which apply a sequence of detergents and rinses to remove grease, dirt and other grime. Still other types of systems may use a combination of both spray arrangements and brushes.
Vehicle washing apparatuses that utilize spray arrangements are particularly popular because they do not scratch or mar the finish of the vehicle due to abrasive contact by brushes, rags or other frictional devices. The sprayed washing fluids typically include a presoak fluid and a soap that chemically loosen and remove dirt from the surface of the vehicle. A high pressure rinse is then applied to remove any remaining traces of dirt and the presoak and soap fluids. The rinse fluid may include softeners and surface tension relievers or surfactants to prevent spotting on the vehicle after washing. In addition, hot wax solutions in fluid form may be applied to the vehicle after cleaning. A final rinse consisting of distilled or RO (reverse osmosis) water is applied last.
The washing installations which employ spray arrangements typically include a passageway through which the vehicle to be washed passes as the various washing fluids are applied. The spray arrangements generally include a series of archways which are spaced along the passageway, fluid conduits including spaced nozzles supported by the archways and associated plumbing for delivering the washing fluids to the conduits. Prior art patents which disclose such systems include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,370,596, 3,578,001, 4,135,533 and 4,715,391. Controls for sequencing the various washing operations may include a trip pad which is driven over by the vehicle as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,578,001 or an optical sensor
such as an electric eye disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,715,391.
While many of the spray arrangements in the prior art washing apparatuses have spray nozzles which remain stationary, a few arrangements employ nozzles which are moved at some point during the washing operation. For example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,931,444 and 2,057,388, the spray nozzles are mounted on pipe sections which are rotated 90.degree. from an inoperative, stowage position where the nozzles do not face the vehicle to an operative position closer to and facing the vehicle. Once in place, however, the nozzles remain stationary during the washing operation.
Still other washing apparatuses employ spraying arrangements in which the nozzles are moved in either an orbital path as in U.S. Pat. No. 4,679,578 or in a rotary path as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,920,997 for the purpose of distributing the washing fluids over the vehicle during the washing operation.
It is a general object of the present invention to provide a washing apparatus that utilizes movable spray nozzles to distribute washing fluids evenly over the vehicle being washed without the complexity of the prior art arrangements. By employing a unique mechanism for moving the nozzles, spray can be directed over the entire vehicle in a relatively brief period of time, and difficulties arising from mechanical wear and failure of movable parts are minimized to yield a more reliable system.